Scottish food influencer gives Sudbury an 'Aye'

Scottish food influencer gives Sudbury an 'Aye'

McMillan says his biggest audience is 'older women because they like the Scottish accent.'

It was love that brought "Scott from Scotland" to northern Ontario, and it was his love of food that launched his career as an Tik Tok food influencer.

Scott McMillan met his wife three years ago on the online dating app Tinder, when she was on a family vacation in Scotland.

They spoke for six months online until she decided to fly back for their first in-person meeting on Christmas Day.

"It was the greatest Christmas present for both of us...and I followed her back to Canada. I said, 'You're not leaving without me, and I came back with her,'" McMillan said.

A marriage and baby soon followed, and McMillan starting posting food reviews online under the moniker "Scott from Scotland." Within months he had thousands of followers.

"If I did food reviews in Scotland, I would be just any generic guy," he said. "But the fact that I'm a guy called 'Scott from Scotland' in a place where nobody has an accent, I got very very lucky."

He joked he's worked his entire life to have a thick Scottish brogue, and admits that's part of his appeal.

"I always thought maybe my fan base would be older women because they like the Scottish accent," said McMillian, adding that he's also had 40-year-old men thank him for his food recommendations.

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Rick Lesvesque, owner of the Shack à Patates chip stand in the Hanmer area of Greater Sudbury, immediately noticed a bump in sales after Scott from Scotland posted a review of the Porky Pig.

It's a 1 kg specialty poutine featuring fries, cheese curds, gravy, pulled pork, shredded bacon, fried onions, deep-fried hot dogs and barbecue sauce.

"Since it went viral, I can't keep pulled pork in stock," said Levesque.

"He's very charasmatic and personable," he said of McMillan. "He's very good for small businesses like myself."

McMillan says that's one of the reasons he prefers to review locally-owned food outlets.

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"You know that you're buying a dish and [the money] is instantly going into the pockets of a family," he said.

Instead of a thumbs up or down, Scott from Scotland rates what he eats with a Scottish "Aye" or "Nah."

He said his move to northern Ontario has definitely been an "Aye."

"My goal is to help and keep growing, not just myself, but growing Sudbury and my love of this country, "McMilland said.

"I've gained friendship from this, I've gained community, I've gained the love for another country, I've gained another home."

Markus Schwabe is the host of Morning North on CBC Radio One, based in Sudbury. You can reach him by email at markus.schwabe@cbc.ca.